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Chapter 163

Despite being encrypted and incomplete, the intricate data didn’t hinder Si-hyun and Laila. Si-hyun, who played the role of Yujin’s shadow, had mastered espionage techniques, while Laila, groomed as the family’s promising heir, received special training and even wore advanced suits. Both being extraordinary individuals, they could easily decipher the data’s contents.

“A soldier aboard the X2-class destroyer was killed by four unidentified life forms. How could this happen?”

“This information is recorded by the StarUnion’s ship computer; the possibility of it being false is low.”

“Well, it’s still preserved in the footage, so it must be true.”

The AI capabilities of the StarUnion far surpassed that of the MegaCorp’s. While there wasn’t much difference in terms of ship operations like route calculations or energy output calculations, the ability to analyze information based on given data was superior on the StarUnion’s side.

Si-hyun wondered if even the Yujin family’s flagship was utilizing the StarUnion’s AI. Laila knew this fact, but it was such an unbelievable reality that she merely mentioned it in passing.

Currently, they were both reviewing the footage recorded by the drones. Cyborgs and androids were helpless against the assault of the four monsters, perishing without any defense.

“That D-type creature, could it be a Bubble Amoeba? It looks quite similar despite the size difference.”

“I’m not sure. I’ve never heard of a Bubble Amoeba wielding such strong psychic power.”

“Perhaps it’s an experimental specimen from Eden or Zhao. They were known to be interested in Bubble Amoeba research.”

Hearing Laila’s casual remark, Si-hyun suddenly recalled something.

“Bubble Amoeba, psychic power, experiment….”

After awakening in the cloning facility, her first recollection was of her memories just before dying. She had been planning to eliminate Akira Yujin’s granddaughter, Kisaragi Yujin.

Kisaragi Yujin had shown remarkable success in psionics and Hulk mutant research. Being crucial to Akira Yujin’s grip on power through the Hulk mutant project, she had to be eliminated somehow.

Si-hyun had planned to attribute Kisaragi’s demise to conspiracies from other families. She succeeded in killing Kisaragi, but everything went awry from that point.

The monster aboard the ship where Kisaragi died interfered with her plans. Si-hyun realized that the monster was far superior to the pinnacle of genetic manipulation, the Shadow. Hence, she attempted to capture it alive, but it proved much more formidable than expected. In the fierce battle, she fell victim to an unexpected variable.

“The Bubble Amoeba aboard the research vessel.”

Initially disregarded as insignificant, its presence became crucial at a decisive moment, utilizing psychic power just as seen in the footage.

“Kisaragi’s final research focus was the latent psychic potential from Bubble Amoebas.”

Having gathered information to kill her, Si-hyun also remembered what she had studied.

“What are the chances of a Bubble Amoeba capable of using psychic power being aboard the ship?”

While watching Laila, Si-hyun double-checked the information on the drone. Information on both A and B type creatures among the four was particularly lacking. They seemed to possess concealment abilities, as they weren’t recorded in the footage.

Among them, Si-hyun was interested in the A-type creature. She accessed the information left by the computer regarding the A-type.

In summary, the creature had exceptional physical abilities and could produce acidic bodily fluids capable of melting ships. It also exhibited high intelligence and a preference for ambushes.

Si-hyun recalled the monster that had killed her as she read the article. It was a creature that carried Bubble Amoebas, exuding acidic blood, and possessed high intelligence. Thinking about it, there were many similarities between the A-type creature that had annihilated the soldiers of the StarUnion and that monster. It seemed to have grown significantly since she last encountered it.

“That monster! It’s still alive after all!”

In the Special Trade Center of T&C, she felt its presence. At that time, she was transporting bombs and couldn’t confront it directly.

After the city collapsed, she was convinced that the monster hadn’t died. With its high intelligence, she believed it would find a way to escape the city and hide somewhere in space. It was a judgment with some basis in fact.

After rescuing Laila’s medical ship adrift in space following the city’s collapse, Si-hyun learned detailed information about the monster from her. She learned about everything that happened in the city, Laila’s research on the monster, and even her ambitions to develop a new type of Hulk mutant.

Si-hyun glanced briefly at Laila.

“There’s no need to talk about it right now.”

The reason why Laila, a Noble Capital, followed Si-hyun’s words was because of vengeance and ambition. Vengeance against the monster that had destroyed her, and the ambition to become the head of T&C using the monster’s body. Thanks to these two goals, she could stay alive even though half of her body was a corpse.

“…In that aspect, perhaps we’re similar.”

Having momentarily entertained that thought, Si-hyun checked the date the data was recorded. It was exactly ten days ago. It had been quite some time, so it would be difficult to find the ship that launched this drone.

“For now, I’ll research this information.”

She didn’t know when she would encounter the monster again. Until then, it was necessary to acquire enough information about it.

“If only I could obtain that weapon…!”

The ancient relic they were currently searching for. If they could get their hands on it, no matter how intelligent the monster was, they would be able to hunt it down.

A quiet flame ignited in Si-hyun’s eyes.

***

“We’ve found the the ship 98!”

Commander-in-Chief Sanadaeff of the Nemea Fleet shouted loudly, his voice filled with tension.

Normally seen wearing casual clothes while piloting his flagship, he was now dressed in a black military uniform. A red emblem was attached to his chest—a badge with a fist in the center surrounded by 12 stars, the symbol of the StarUnion.

[Search complete! Captain confirmed alive inside!]

The reason he wore the uniform, which he didn’t even wear during combat, and even attached the emblem was because of the two entities watching him.

[Inquiry. Sanadaeff. Are there any other cyborgs present?]

“Um, yes! Nine other survivors have been confirmed!”

The one who asked him was Nemea Five, the top council member of the StarUnion and Sanadaeff’s immediate superior, a high-performance android.

To Sanadaeff, Nemea Five was a difficult superior, but the presence that truly made him nervous was not that android.

[Report from Nemea Five received. Sir, shall we commence the operation?]

[Commence it.]

Grandmaster Jubaka, head of the Mechanical Assembly and the supreme ruler of the StarUnion, was observing Sanadaeff from the capital, Starks-01.

Just hearing the mythical presence and the voice of supreme dignity of the StarUnion made Sanadaeff nearly faint.

[Orders confirmed! Docking operations initiated! Combat units are ready for entry!]

“Orders. Prepare yourselves. Other ships.”

[Deputy of Arrow Fleet! Ship’s orders confirmed! Target locked!]

[Deputy of Redtail Fleet! Ship’s orders confirmed! Target locked!]

He barely suppressed a sob as he gave the command. The captains of the other ships also responded with curses and acknowledgments over the comms, likely sharing Sanadaeff’s sentiment.

Currently, they are conducting a search mission targeting ship 98, which lost contact ten days ago.

Ship 98, which was supposed to repair its FTL engines upon arrival at the AD-100 galaxy, began erratic behavior after communication was cut off. It was observed even using the damaged FTL engine, reported as broken, to conduct consecutive FTL jumps to other galaxies.

Normally, it would have been a problem solved by the Nemea Fleet’s Commander-in-Chief Nemea Five, but this time was different.

Due to the interest shown by Grandmaster Jubaka in ship 98, three elite fleets pursued it.

And they found ship 98 in a neutral zone in the galaxy after ten days. Amidst the bustling trade routes, the 98th ship floated alone.

Ship 98, known to be infected by bio-ships, had the same appearance as the conventional X2-class destroyer but with a different color. The space around the ship had a dark color like the void, which seemed to indicate severe contamination to anyone’s eyes.

[Docking complete! Initiating boarding!]

[Command confirmed. Permission granted.]

Sanadaeff’s flagship was attached besides ship 98. Due to his failure to properly manage his subordinate ships, Sanadaeff’s ship was tasked with directly searching the interior of the ship.

The other fleets, except for him, aimed at the 98th ship from a distance. If anything unusual happened, their cannons would fire immediately.

[All signals detected in the control room. Bio-signals are all stable. No special deviations.]

“Search thoroughly. We don’t know what might come out.”

“Yes Grand… um, alright! Sir!”

The real-time footage from the androids and walkers aboard ship 98 was transmitted to each flagship and the Grandmaster. Sanadaeff also monitored his subordinates’ movements through cables connected to his neck.

Inside the ship, a gas containing hazardous chemicals was densely spread like mist. As the subordinates adjusted the cameras, moving biological tissues were visible throughout the ship.

Seeing this, Jubaka murmured,

“…Nemea Five. Save everything without exception.”

[Nemea Five responding. Currently saving. Don’t worry, Chairman.]

The subordinates at the scene, unable to hear their conversation, quickly searched the ship. Soon, they arrived at the control room.

“T…That…?!”

Seeing the scene inside the control room filmed by the subordinates, Sanadaeff was horrified.

The control room, with its rigid and rough design, was gone. In its place were tentacles resembling blood vessels, constantly swelling and bursting pods, and disgusting biological pipes emitting toxic mist.

It was less of a control room and more of a nest. A nest of horrifying and disgusting creatures.

In that abominable dwelling, there were Captain Cain and eight cyborgs from the 98th ship they had been looking for. They were firmly tied up by hardened tentacles, hanging from the walls and ceiling.

“We found Captain Cain and eight crew members! No casualties so far!”

[Command. Confirm.]

One walker approached Cain, who was stuck to the wall. But as the walker got closer, Cain started writhing.

“W-What’s… suddenly, why…?”

“What’s going on?”

“T-The heart rate of the ship’s captain is increasing.”

Even though his face was entwined with tentacles, he somehow managed to open his mouth wide and shouted.

“Get out of here right now! This ship…cough!”

He vomited blood profusely and then bowed his head deeply. At the same time, the bio-signal of Cain, being monitored by Sanadaeff, also turned black.

“The captain of ship 98 has died!”

“Dead? Why all of a sudden…Wait. Could it be?”

Having seen Cain’s death, Jubaka urgently shouted as if something had occurred to him.

“Everyone retreat! Get away from ship 98…!”

Before Jubaka could finish his sentence, a massive light burst from the engine room of ship 98.

Sanadaeff could never know that it was because of a bomb installed in the engine room.

｢Big Guy, what’s wrong?｣

Number 26 asked me as I suddenly moved my head.

[ZZZ ZZZ ZZZ (It’s nothing. Don’t worry)]

｢Yeah.｣

[ZZZ ZZZ (Is it uncomfortable because it’s narrow?)]

｢No! I’m really happy being close to Big Guy, Middle Guy, and Little Guy all together!｣

[ZZZ ZZZ (That’s fortunate)]

As Number 26 said, Adhai and Mother of the Sky were tightly attached to my gigantic body.

‘It really is cramped.’

It was an unavoidable choice to escape from the StarUnion’s pursuit.

Three days ago, I abandoned ship 98 of the StarUnion and switched to a new one.

The reason was that after scouring through the ship’s computer records after corroding the ship, I discovered that Captain Cain had launched a rescue drone.

‘Because of his pointless actions, things got complicated.’

To evade the StarUnion’s pursuit, I had to switch ships as soon as the “Horizon of Nightmares” cooldown ended.

Since acquiring a new ship in the vastness of space was no easy task, I had no choice but to change plans and go to a galaxy with many trading ships to find a new one.

‘Thanks to that, it’s taking longer than originally planned.’

I wanted to kill Cain for practically wasting a week, but I held back. Instead, I thought of a suitable punishment for Cain, considering how to give him a punishment that would spread rumors of my vengeance.

The Parasitic Bait Trap operation.

I ordered the cyborgs to manufacture bombs, and I implanted sensors in their bodies. If their hearts stopped, the bombs would detonate automatically.

After abandoning the ship, I tied up all nine cyborgs in the control room and installed bombs in the engine room.

‘If the StarUnion comes looking for me…’

The parasitized cyborgs would do anything to escape. Their actions would go against my intentions, but the reinforced parasites would exact revenge on them.

‘And when the cyborgs die? Boom.’

Thanks to the Enhanced Infection Type, the parasites could survive without me for about five to six days. While the parasite replacement itself posed no problem, I attached symbiotic spores just in case they starved to death.

After completing all the tasks, I could finally leave the 98th ship with peace of mind.

And today, three days later, I felt the parasites regenerating inside my body again. The fact that all nine parasites died simultaneously meant that the bombs had exploded.

My plan had succeeded.

‘They found me later than I thought. If I knew, I would have gotten a better ship.’

The ship I corroded was a cargo ship purchased from a neutral galaxy where no faction had a presence.

It was a ship Mother of the Sky, disguised as a wolf, went out and bought. Funds were obtained by selling the drones and androids installed on the ship.

I didn’t bother capturing a passing ship because they would think of me as a bio-ship and never imagine that I would buy and move around in a ship.

Even if a player intervened in my pursuit, it wouldn’t matter. In fact, as a player, they would have a harder time finding me.

‘They’ll know me as Amorph.’

Amorph is a species with which conversation and negotiations are impossible. They wouldn’t even dream of me having three friends.

‘Things went according to plan, but I’m a bit disappointed with the ship.’

At that time, I hastily acquired a ship because I didn’t know when the pursuit team would arrive. As a result, the ship we boarded was barely over 60m in size.

‘My body is well over 25m, so 60m is…’

Moreover, since we needed food while moving, I packed combat rations for cyborgs and energy drinks purchased from the neutral galaxy tightly.

As a result, there was hardly any space left, so we had to stick together tightly like this.

‘I’m glad Number 26 can shrink its body.’

The little one, who had shrunk to about 50cm in size, was dozing off on top of my head.

｢Big one｣ ｢Me｣ ｢Hungry｣

[ZZZ ZZZ (Just wait a moment)]

Adhai, the Gallagon navigator of this ship, was lying on her stomach on top of my tail. I generated a suction tentacle and handed her the energy drinks.

｢Thank you.｣

With a brief thanks, she inserted the tentacle into the energy drink and sucked it up eagerly. Unlike the Calorie Banana flavored cyborg combat rations, the apple cider-flavored energy drink was quite palatable.

‘I should have gotten a bigger ship.’

Lastly, Mother of the Sky. She returned in her Wolf form and was tightly attached to my side. She kept tossing and turning, making the claws and thorns on my carapace uncomfortable.

‘I need to help her out a bit.’

I slightly adjusted the ship’s structure to create space so that she could lie comfortably.

[ZZZ ZZZZ (How is it?)]

｢I appreciate it, but aren’t you uncomfortable like this?｣

[ZZZ ZZZZ ZZ ZZZZ ZZZZ ZZ ZZZ (I don’t feel uncomfortable because I’ve merged with the ship)]

｢I envy that a bit.｣

[ZZZZ ZZ ZZZ ZZZZ ZZ ZZZ (It might be uncomfortable, but bear with it for a month and a half)]

She sighed softly at my words. With that, our conversation ended.

As I prepared to focus on superluminal navigation again, she spoke softly.

｢Thanks for caring.｣

[ZZ ZZZ (Mention not)]

Expressing her gratitude, she seemed to feel proud and soon closed her eyes. After a while, I heard her gentle breathing.

Leaving Mother of the Sky asleep, I continued with the superluminal navigation.